“Authoritarian, wild, flabby..." How America sees world leaders

In today’s international press review, we take a look at how the press covered the world wide “diplomatic crisis”. Wikileaks revealed 250,000 top secret documents, exposing the United States’ view of the world. American diplomats allegedly criticized several heads of state in memos. Washington is also thought to have asked diplomats to spy on members of the United Nations.

The press was extremely careful in publishing those top secret embassy cables, evoking freedom of expression and public interest. Around 120 journalists have been working on the classified documents for weeks, deciding on what to print and what sources to protect.

According to Le Monde, Bradley Manning is thought to be behind the leak although that information has not been officially confirmed. The 23 year old soldier is already accused of leaking documents about the Iraq war earlier this year.If found guilty, he could risk up to 52 years in prison.

On their front page, Der Spiegel and El Pais published photos of various world leaders with quotes from various memos. French president Nicolas Sarkozy is described as “authoritarian”, Italian leader Silvio Berlusconi is seen as “wild” and the North Korean dictator Kim Kong Il is seen as “a flabby old chap who suffers from physical and psychological trauma”.

The British royal family is also mentioned in the US files. The Daily Mail reports that Prince Andrew is thought to have shocked the Americans with his “rude behaviour abroad”.

Meanwhile, The Guardian focuses on spying allegations. US diplomats are accused of gathering detailed information on members of the United Nations, including Ban Ki-Moon.

And finally, the Daily Mail wonders if Washington tried to sabotage Wikileaks as the website crashed just hours before it was due to publish the files.

An Australian at heart with Indian origins, Dheepthika has been at FRANCE 24 since 2012. She loves browsing through the papers with a special soft spot for anything Aussie and anything that takes us out of the mundane.

FLORENCE VILLEMINOTJournalist

As a bilingual Franco-American, she enjoys explaining everything French to an Anglophone audience… as well as exploring ideas that will shape the future.

HAXIE MEYERS-BELKIN Presenter

A Londoner born and bred, Haxie joined FRANCE 24 in 2013 and hasn't looked back. She's covered everything from international affairs to culture, but enjoys nothing more than sifting through the papers to find the most insightful articles and scathing cartoons of the day.